Not Involved
by BlazingPhoenix17
Summary: Drakken has invented a device which connects universes and accidentally brings in a boy from another place. A boy who knows their universe. Sounds like a bad fanfic plot right? Well he knows that too. Watch as he tries to subvert what is expected of a self-insert, and laugh as he fails miserably.
1. Arrival

Not Involved

Universe Ident: … 225686551.443

A flash of green light exploded across the underground room as a large machine finished its operating cycle. Two people stood nearby at a control console, one watching the device with an almost child-like glee, while the other appeared to be infinitely more interested in her gloves. When the loud gyrations of the machine finally stopped, the attentive one of the two fairly pranced up to the device's center, at which point stood a hatch which covered what lay within.

The manner of the man's walk contrasted sharply with his appearance. His skin was a deathly pale blue, matched by the dark blue lab suit he wore over it. A shock of deep black hair stood unruly upright on his head, while a long vertical scar marred one side of the man's face. This blemish hardly kept the man from talking, for as soon as he reached the hatch he turned and bellowed in a massive voice, "Behold, Shego, the culmination of my greatest project!"

The other person in the room, a very shapely woman with lime tinted skin, ignored the mad scientist's latest claim to glory and instead continued to file the iron fingertips of her gloves. Shego started a mental countdown just waiting for her crazed boss, Doctor Drakken, to freak out at her inattentiveness.

_3…2…1… _"SHEGO!" _Right on time Doctor D. _"I'm sorry, what was that Doc? I kinda zoned out after the first ten minutes of waiting." Shego was in a worse mood then usual regarding Drakken – which was saying something – due to having been forced to wait over an hour for Drakken's machine to finish doing… whatever the hell it was doing.

"Pay more attention Shego," the blue man fumed. "You just happen to be present for one of the greatest moments in the history of mankind!" Drakken ignored the loudly obvious yawn that his second in command let out and continued. "I have just successfully connected two different dimensions. The possibilities of this technology are endless."

Shego was about to suck the wind out of Drakken's sails with one of her trademark quips when a loud banging sounded from inside the machine. Two pairs of eyes were drawn to the hatch in surprise and, in one case, concern. "Uh, Doc, what is that?"

Drakken approached the console and typed in a few commands. The data he received was gibberish to Shego's eyes but the Doc was able to translate it for himself. "It appears we have a guest waiting inside my invention." He grinned deviously and let his fingers fly across the keyboard.

"Guest?" Shego asked, a hint of nervousness creeping into her voice. Realizing this she quickly clenched down on those small portents of fear. Being a thief wanted in eleven countries and boasting the ability to generate steal-melting plasma does not allow one to experience fear, no matter how minor. Still, the green-skinned woman did decide to back up a few paces in deference to her previous experience with her boss's inventions. "What kind of guest?"

Drakken cackled madly and pulled a small remote out of his pocket. He let his hand hover ominously over the button as he proclaimed, "Only the most important traveler in the history of our time. The first person to ever travel between dimensions. Behold!"

At the last word Drakken pushed the button on the remote, opening the hatch on the machine with a quiet hiss of released pressure. A second or two passed in which Shego thought that Drakken's invention had actually failed before a young man climbed out of the hatch and blinked in the harsh lair lights. The boy appeared very nondescript, with simple straight brown hair falling around an average face that currently showed immense surprise. He was not thin, but definitely not overweight either and actually hid any extra fat underneath a large t-shirt and long baggy shorts rather skillfully. His skin had a slight brown tint to it, though whether natural or tanned it was hard to tell. Only the eyes seemed to carry any great distinction, the deep chocolate color projecting a both warm and studious gaze. At first the boy swept his eyes all around the room before finally settling on her. When he did so his mouth dropped open so hard Shego jokingly wondered if he'd dislocated his jaw.

_I know that my green skin is a little unusual for most people but from the look on his face it's as if he had seen a ghost of dinosaur trying to eat him. I'm not _that_ dangerous pal._

The young man must have realized how hard he was staring because he quickly turned away in an attempt to save face but the damage was done as far as Shego's opinion of him went. _And here I thought Dr. D had actually achieved something. Guess I know better than to make that mistake again._

The Doctor for his part had proudly watched the boy step out and observe the lab but soon grew annoyed at being ignored and coughed loudly. The lad jumped at the sudden sound and whirled in surprise to Drakken, who said, "Welcome to a new dimension."

The traveler stared at him with a completely dumbfounded look on his face and responded with, "Are you shitting me?

Universe Ident: 225686551.115

19 year old college student Brian Forest snapped up his backpack and stuffed his laptop into the largest pocket, grunting as one of the corners got caught on the inner edge. Again. _Ugh, I need a bigger backpack. And to buy my books. And my tram card. And my school supplies. UGH!_ Palm found face as the enormity of the coming school year swept the boy all at once. He almost lost the will to stand up as the sheer amount of work that he would face once his sophomore year started in earnest. A loud sigh left him as he gathered up his stuff for the last day of summer school and made his way to the door. _If only I could delay school for just another few weeks. I'm sure I'd be ready by then. Or better yet, how about sending me back to high school huh? Things were so much easier back then. Hell, while I'm busy wishing, why don't I pray to visit an alternate universe where I can meet all of my favorite cartoon characters, cause that's just _bound _to happen. _He growled a bit to himself as he reached the door. _The world doesn't work that way moron. If it did I would be suddenly dragged out of my home kicking and screaming by so unknown force._

Just as the boy reached the door and grabbed the handle, a sudden whirlwind started in the center of his room. The hurricane-force winds whipped the lighter objects in the room into a frenzy as Brian found himself drawn into the center of the unnatural storm. Bright green lights flashed around him as the winds continued to accelerate. Then, just as things couldn't get any worse – or stranger – the room around him disappeared in a veil of blackness so complete he thought he'd gone completely blind. Brian lost all feeling in body and his mind cried out for sensory input that was suddenly gone.

Universe Ident: … 225686551.443

Before the emptiness could cause him to go insane, he felt breath return to him as he collapsed onto an unseen floor. A great sigh of relief escaped his lips as Brian stood up and looked around him. Darkness still surrounded him in sightlessness, save for a small sliver of light leaking through some cracks in what appeared to be a wall. The nervous boy approached the light with caution, only just barely keeping sheer bloody panic from overwhelming him. Upon nearing the wall he recognized the shape of the light as similar to a hatch. The teen leaned against the wall, trying to pick out any noises on the other side.

After listening for a few seconds he managed to pick up the sound of a conversation, or at least one part of a conversation as he could only make out one person yelling very loudly. Praying that whoever was outside wouldn't try to harm him, Brian banged on the hatch as hard as he could. Nothing happened for a moment or two, causing Brian to worry that he hadn't been heard. He was about to knock again when the hatch slid open with an ominous hiss. Fighting another wave of fear, Brian forced himself through and stepped out of the dark room.

He was instantly blinded by the strong overhead lights but swiftly managed to blink away the purple spots that blocked his vision. As soon as he did he found himself looking directly at a tall black-haired woman with green skin and an alternating green and black skin-tight cat suit. Normally he would be gladly staring at the woman for her sheer beauty (out of the corner of his eye of course) but what caught his attention in particular was her green skin. Even in this it wasn't exclusively out of surprise, but out of a confusing feeling of familiarity.

It took a few seconds for him to recognize that he was staring very openly and obnoxiously at her and made an attempt to close his mouth. The look of obvious annoyance on her face declared that he had failed miserably, but he felt his mouth fall open again as her face made him realize why she was so familiar.

_THAT'S SHEGO! From the show Kim Possible! What the hell is going on here?_

As he looked closer he was surprised at how closely she resembled her cartoon origin. Brian was quickly jolted from his surprise when he heard a loud cough to his left. When he turned to the sound he felt a renewed feeling of shock as he found himself staring at what could only be Doctor Drakken, Shego's evil scientist boss from the same TV show. _What the hell?_

The blue-skinned man swept a hand proudly through the air and loudly boasted, "Welcome to a new dimension."

Brian felt like his brain was going to implode at the sheer impossibility of his current position, and expressed his feeling with a very simple phrase. "Are you shitting me?"

The blue man before him blanched at the foul language, while Shego found her attention placed firmly back on their visitor. _A teen with an actual mouth. That's a rare sight._

Drakken took a moment to readjust himself from the shock, then began an obviously prepared speech. "No. I am not 'kidding you' my boy. You are now standing in an entirely different dimension which…"

"Universe."

Drakken was so stunned by the interruption that he completely lost track of his monologue. "What?"

Brian adopted a very studied and calm tone that deeply contrasted his earlier shock. "Universe. Where you've brought me to is a new universe. Dimensions are the different sets of directions that make up time and space. Since I can't see past the next second forward in time, I would guess that the dimensional rating is still the same."

Shego sighed in annoyance. _And now he's completely lost me. Somehow Drakken has managed to bring yet another Insufferable Genius into her life. Great._

For his part Drakken actually liked the explanation. He disliked being corrected but he decided to let it go. "Hm, universe does sound better than dimension. Very well, I'm change the name. From now on my machine will be called the InterUniversal Transporter™." *IUT. Remember it. It's important.*

Shego rolled her eyes at the Doc's usual dramatics and returned to her nails. _Now comes the boring part._

The InterUniversal Transporter ™ loomed above Brian, its multiple mechanical arms arcing over the machine's center like the branches of a tree. The young man was mystified by the design and couldn't even begin to imagine how it worked. _There is no way in hell that I could figure out how to get back home on my own. I just have to hope that Drakken will send me back quickly. _To that end, Brian decided to put things back on track. "So, why exactly did you bring me here?"

The piercing question brought Drakken's eyes off the IUT and back to Brian. "Ah yes. Why you're here." Drakken shook his head a bit and mumbled, "To be honest I didn't mean to bring you here at all."

Brian's eye widened in shock. "What."

The Doctor shuffled a bit and responded, "I was only testing the machine to see if it would work. I didn't try to transport anything." The boy's utter stillness actually worried Drakken a bit and he moved closer to see if he was alright.

Brian was too busy being stunned to notice the blue man's concern. The boy's logical mind tried to make sense of what the Doctor had said, but the sheer impossibility of it impeded its success. Instead he felt a blinding, irrational anger sweep through him which overrode his reason. He grabbed Drakken and roughly shoved him up against his machine while loudly yelling, "You mean to tell me I was brought here on ACCIDENT!"

The raging screams jerked Shego out of her peaceful solitude to see Drakken being held two feet off the ground and jammed against the IUT. The green skinned woman was about to jump in and blast the boy with some plasma when he let Drakken go on his own. _Oh come on, kid. Make up your damn mind!_

Brian shook a bit as his anger drained away and was replaced with shame. "I'm sorry. Really. I don't usually lose control of myself like that. Won't happen again, I promise." The boy shuddered at how deeply he had lost himself in those moments and silently reminded himself about why he'd put such an effort into controlling his anger. _The last time this happened I seriously beat up that one bully. Sure he deserved to be punished but knocking out a tooth and spraining his arm was too much. I need to keep myself in control if I'm going to get back home._

Shego huffed in disappointment at the quiet resolution to the unexpected problem. _Just as it started to get exciting. What is with this kid anyway? One moment he's saying stuff that outsmarts Dr. D., next he's holding him up by his collar._ Shego paused as she returned to that last thought. _Wait a second. That kid is no larger than that buffoon sidekick Princess drags along with her, yet he was able to lift a grown man off his feet with no problem. I may have to watch this guy more closely._ Shego settled back into her spot leaning against the console and pretended to be once again engrossed with her gloves. However, she now kept one eye actively on both men as she filed, not eager to be caught off guard again.

Drakken, meanwhile, had completely forgotten the whole incident the moment Brian apologized. Perhaps he was just so used to constant threats from Shego that he'd become inured to actual injury. Or maybe he was just a complete dunce. Brian had no idea which.

"Ah, well anyway as I was saying I wasn't aiming at anything in particular to transport with the IUT. If I programmed it correctly then that means it would have grabbed up whatever loose items were near you when you transported. Do you want to see if there is anything inside the machine from your universe?"

Brian contemplated the Doc's words for a moment before he remembered what he had been doing before his life had been ripped from his hands. A few tendrils of hope rolled into the boy's mind and he raced into the machine, nearly banging his head on the hatch in his haste. He scrambled about in the sudden darkness, hands brushing against several random bits of debris that had been swept in from his room. _This thing is a lot bigger than it looks on the outside. How does that work exactly?_

A minute passed and Brian was no closer to finding his backpack. He was about to give up hope when a pale green light shone around the dark chamber. Brian knew where the light had to be coming from but did not dare turn around. He instead focused on his backpack, which was lying in the corner with numerous books piled against it. He swiftly snapped it up and turned to leave.

As he did he caught a glimpse of Shego's plasma power for the first time. The green fire-like substance roiled over the woman's palm in a beautiful and haunting dance which belied its ferocious power. His expression of awe much have surprised the super-human as she quirked an eyebrow at him in confusion. Brian felt a bit embarrassed and shuffled past Shego into the lab. As he did, he turned and said, "Thanks."

The green-skinned woman was shocked at how honest and sincere the comment was. She briefly fumbled for an answer, then mumbled a nearly silent, "No big… deal." The boy nodded in response and walked past her to the Doctor, who was gesturing to a table that had just been set up by a pair of retreating minions. _That… he… What the hell was that? He just… said thanks, even though I hardly did anything. I only helped because I was bored and wanted to get this done, but… _Shego shook her head to clear her mind of the weird thoughts waving through it.

She and Drakken sat at a recently setup table as Brian placed his backpack on the table and tore through it, quickly checking to make sure everything was there. _Computer, charger, headphones, wireless mouse and batteries, cellphone, wallet, keys, summer textbook, two water bottles, and one well stocked lunch box._ He sighed loudly as he replaced everything into the backpack and placed it next to him on the floor.

Drakken had quietly fidgeted while Brian was checking his belongings, eager to start his interrogation. Once the boy had finished repacking his bag and turned toward them the Doctor launched a barrage of questions at him, asking just as fast as his tongue could wag. They came so fast the Brian could barely hear them, let alone come up with an answer of any depth. "Hey, wait moment there. Slow down Doc," Brian said calmly. "I can't even understand what you're saying."

Drakken halted in his excitement and awkwardly tried to apologize. Brian waved him off and replied, "Hey, it's okay. I get it. I've got a lot of questions too, believe me. How about this? We'll ask questions in turn, first you then me and so on. How's that sound?"

Shego silently agreed that it was a good idea, and was about to quip as such when she noticed something he'd said. _He called Drakken 'Doc'. Neither of us has said our names yet. How could he know what Drakken calls himself? _Shego grunted to nab the attention away from Drakken, who was just about to ask a question, and asked, "How did you know Drakken was a doctor?"

Brian quickly realized that he had slipped up and fought a sudden urge to gulp ominously. He thankfully managed to whip out his poker face and came up with an alibi. "Well, uh, come on. What else could he be? Could anyone else but a PhD make an InterUniversal Transporter™ by themselves?" The answer seemed to satisfy Drakken, but Shego didn't appear very reassured. He chuckled a little, trying in vain to defuse the tension the hung around the table. To his relief, and a bit to his suspicion, Shego nonchalantly shrugged and returned to her nail file.

_Wow, she really does that. That is both awesome and frightening at the same time._ Brian thought that was an apt description of the woman herself, her stunning beauty hiding a temperamental fire hotter than the Sun. _If I want to avoid getting burned, _literally, _I'm going to have to be a lot more careful._

The mental battle that had gone on between Brian and Shego was completely lost on Drakken, who impatiently motioned for a return question. His annoyed grumbling brought Brian back to the conversation at hand. "Oh right. Sorry. I was a bit distracted by how weird this all is. It's not every day that I get sucked out of my room for no explicable reason and am dragged into a completely different universe. You should try it some time. It's a hoot."

Drakken was clearly confused by the subtle sarcasm, but Shego smirked at the semi-hidden joke. Brian caught the reaction and smiled a bit in response, which threw Shego for a bit of a loop. _What is with that look? I liked his joke, so what? Why is he giving me that stupid smile?_ The woman's frown returned and she returned to her nails, her eyes becoming hidden by a lock of her long hair.

Brian raised an eyebrow in confusion at the blatant attempt to ignore him, but let it go as part of Shego's natural soloist nature. Still, he wanted to know more about these people who were sitting across from him. They may look and act exactly like the characters in the show, but Brian knew that the instant the multiverse came into play, ALL bets were off. Everything was possible and ANYTHING was permitted. He would admit, with his luck and the added factor of him tempting fate to do exactly this, odds were that he had indeed ended up in the universe which accurately represented the Kim Possible TV show. But, there were a billion other possibilities that could result in his death, dismemberment, or even worse, MARY SUEDOM! This last one was what Brian feared most, for it was becoming increasingly clear that his situation was _very_ reminiscent of several self-insert fics he'd passed through in his spare time over the summer. While a few of them ranged between good and passable, the vast majority of them were complete dog-crap, and if he was stuck in one of those then he was well and truly screwed. For it brought up the question, was he his own person, or was he an original character created by some random fan of a finished series? *Note, the name Brian Forrest was taken from a fanfiction called 'The Ultimate Ace'. Aside from the name he is an original character. DUE KNOT STEEL!*

Brian suppressed his fears for the moment and asked, "So anyway, just a quick question here, how exactly are you able to produce that green fire? Is it some sort of fire inducing field generated by those gloves you are constantly slaving over?" Shego's smirk reappeared as she shook her head and stayed silent. "Okay. How about this? Your suit carries some sort of flammable gas that is released from your palm and ignites upon contact with the atmosphere. Am I close?"

Shego scoffed and replied, "Does it look like I have room in this thing to hide a gallon of gasoline?"

Brian sighed and stated in a deadpan, "No, no you probably don't. Fine, I give up. It's superpowers isn't it." The green-skinned woman merely nodded and Brian groaned in response. "I'm in a world with superpowers. Great." When both the adults sitting across from him gave him questioning looks, he explained, "Universes with superpowers tend to have superheroes and super villains and evil plots and blah, blah, blah. Which is not something I want to deal with. Sure it's fun to read about and enjoy from far away, but being inside those worlds usually sucks for all involved. And trust me when I say I do not want to be involved in any of that."

To her surprise, Shego found herself slightly agreeing with the boy. Her powers had always been more trouble than they were worth as the ability to conjure steel-melting plasma is not something that can be easily ignored by civilians and police alike.

Brian noticed their silence and continued with his question, asking, "So, how many other people have powers like yours?"

Shego turned to Drakken, who shrugged, then replied, "So far as I know, me and my brothers are the only people in the world with powers like these." Shego shuddered a bit as the thought of her brothers appeared unbidden in her mind.

Brian mulled that over for a bit, thinking that it was probably true given that weird alien rainbow comets are not a common occurrence. He nodded and asked, "How did your family get your powers? Radiation or scientific experimentation?" Upon mentioning the second he snidely looked at Drakken in mock suspicion.

The blue man was about to say otherwise when Shego cut him off by saying, "I think it was radiation or something. The scientists were too busy fawning over their data to be very clear."

"Ah, but radiation from what? The irradiated energy from standard nuclear reactions is pretty much overwhelmingly negative, regardless of what fiction likes to think. So if you gained your powers from changed DNA due to radiation, it must be of a radically different type than what can be found on Earth."

Oddly enough Shego found that she could understand this explanation far better than the boy's previous one about Drakken's apparently incorrect name. _Perhaps it is because he's talking about something I actually am familiar with this time. Still, if _Drakken_ tried to say the same thing there's no way anyone would get it._ Shego responded to the rather astute question by snarking, "Does a rainbow-colored comet from outside our solar system count?"

Brian mimicked a look of confusion on his face to mask his knowledge and deadpanned, "A rainbow comet?" When Shego nodded in response he sighed and said, "What are the unicorns of Equestria in charge of superpowers now?"

Both adults looked at him in complete confusion, and Brian realized how much that sounded like a Non Sequitor. He crossed his arms and said, "Don't Ask. Trust me, You Do Not Want To Know." He paused as he remembered some of Drakken's crazier antics in the show, and restated, "I think."

Now Shego felt even more confused, but decided it would be too difficult to decipher his meaning and just ask her question. "So, now that you know more about my powers, why don't you explain who you are and why you seem to be taking this so calmly?" Drakken was about to add his own questions to the mix, but stopped when Shego kicked him under the table.

Brian chuckled at the quiet yelp the doctor let out, then leaned far back in his chair and replied, "I may appear visibly calm, but believe me, if you could see my mind right now you would have an easier time picking your way through an Antarctic blizzard than seeing anything coherent. Thankfully for all of us I have a little bit of third-hand experience of this kind of situation through my incessant reading of science fiction stories. You'd be surprised how many times this sort of thing pops up in literature. Though I never expected it to actually be put to use, I know enough about how to handle a cross-universe meeting to keep myself from saying something really stupid. For the most part." Drakken nodded in understanding and motioned him to continue, trying and failing miserably to hide his notepad from Brian's sight.

"Anyway, you might be disappointed to find out that I'm no one special. My name is Brian Forrest, don't laugh," Drakken quickly shut up, "and I'm just an average college student trying to learn his place in the world. A world I'm not sure I'll ever get back to now."

When Drakken showed that he was still too hung up on Brian's name to respond, Shego elbowed him hard, pointing his attention back to the conversation at hand. "Aw, yes, well, as Shego was kind enough to remind me just now," Shego stuck out her tongue to him and he sneered in response, "I should probably get to work finding a way for you to return home. Though I would be very grateful if I could perhaps scan your computer to see if it has any interesting technologies."

Brian narrowed his eyes in response and grabbed up his backpack, clutching it tightly to him. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but I highly doubt any of the tech on my computer could match up to making an InterUniversal Transporter™."

Shego silently took note of his protectiveness and assigned the backpack the appropriate level of importance. If they needed him to do something, she would just snatch the computer and threaten it with some plasma. It probably wouldn't come to that in most situations, but it paid to always be prepared.

When Drakken held up his hands in a clear surrendering gesture, Brian's arms uncoiled a bit and he asked, "So, now that you know about me, tell me about yourselves." Drakken took in a long breath to prepare for his long speech, but let it out in one large humph when Brian said, "Her first."

Shego turned away from her questioner and started filing her nails again, choosing to respond with, "Name's Shego. Got plasma powers. Work for Dr. Drakken."

Brian's annoyance was clear in his voice as he asked, "That's it?"

"That's it."

"Aw come on. Every superhuman has to have a backstory. What was it?"

Shego continued to remain silent, though a slight smile graced her lips to show that she was enjoying his frustration.

"Please. You didn't even tell me where or when the comet affected you. Did it crash into your house, were you or your family injured, did your parents…" **STOP!** Brian fell silent as brain caught up with his mouth. **Are you trying to give yourself away?**

_But I need to know these things so that I can tell what kind of Shego I'm dealing with here. Has she ever killed someone? Did she become evil out of frustration or out of a genuine darkness? I won't know unless I ask._

**And how do you think she would respond to these questions? Just sit there and loyally answer every random thing that pops into your mind?** Brian found that he could not answer that. How would _he_ respond to such questions? With quiet indignity or a punch to the face?

_Probably a fast fist all things considered. _Brian mentally shook his head, annoyed that a part of himself thought that violence was the answer. **If you think that you would find such questions worthy of violence, how do you think **_**Shego**_** would respond?**The resulting shudder was enough to force him to concede the point. **Knowledge of your situation is important, but it does not take precedence over keeping yourself hidden. If people in this universe found out you know about them, the results would be unpredictably chaotic and quite possibly dangerous.**

_And we all know how great you are in a fight_. Brian bristled a bit at the jab, but did not argue. 'Fine,' Brian thought back. 'I'll drop it for now. But as soon as I can ask from a secure position, I will find out her secrets.' The two mental projections of himself nodded their assent and retreated into his mind.

When Brian finally returned to the table, he found both adults staring at him, one with slight concern, and the other with confused annoyance bordering on anger. He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head as he said, "Sorry, I was just arguing with myself. I realized that it was rude to ask you so many questions about something you probably don't like to think about. I sincerely apologize for my mistake."

Shego again found herself disarmed by the boy's politeness and sincerity and had to look away to hide her blush of embarrassment. When it became apparent that she wasn't going to turn back, Drakken launched into a long tirade about his disappointing life. Brian listened politely to the blue doctor's rants about his miserable childhood, traitorous college friends, stupid scientific peers, and the persecutions of an uncomprehending world. The boy was encouraged to see that nearly everything the doctor said was in keeping with the history he remembered from the show, with some added tidbits that he had been unaware of.

One thing that caught his interest was a story Drakken told about how he'd beaten a bunch of bullies at their own game by finding an older student and having them warn the punks off. Seems that the idea of bodyguards was something he'd been thinking about for many years. _Maybe that's why he can't get anything done without Shego. He feels too vulnerable without somebody to protect him._

By the time Drakken had finished Shego had gotten over her annoyance and yet again returned to her gloves. _Seriously, how often does she have to file those things? It's not like they'll self-destruct without her attention._ **Maybe she does it to try and annoy whoever she is speaking with? **

Brian could definitely see her doing something like that, given her predilection for messing with her enemy's mind. _Not that it helps against… _

**QUIET!**

_What?! _

**If you even think about her, she will show up and destroy everything, including our way out of here!**

_But…_

**Tell me I'm wrong. Please. **

_Sigh. Your right. Self-inserts _demand_ that the method of arrival be destroyed on arrival so that the guy who is brought in stuck there and forced to take part in whatever random hijinks the author wants._ Brian felt a sudden spike of fear at the thought of the sheer madness that could ensue in the Kim Possible universe, a world full of mad scientist super villains and random unexplained science that could spell either doom or candy for those involved. _It would be best if we avoid steering the conversation anywhere near Miss Cartoon Title and just focus on convincing Drakken to let us leave._

To that end Brian coughed to attract Shego's attention. When the green-skinned woman looked over, Brian motioned for her to get Drakken to pause for a moment. Shego interpreted this request as a suggestion to tip over the doctor's chair, knocking him flat on his back. Drakken began muttering numerous pseudo-obscenities as he stood back up, giving Brian plenty of time to recover from his near laughing fit. By the time Dr. D had reseated himself- after giving Shego something that was vaguely similar to a death glare but too weak to qualify- Brian had managed to restrain himself and asked without giggling, "So, Drakken, this is all very interesting, in a mind-destroying-through-revelation kind of way, but I do really hope to be able to return home soon. I would _very_ much appreciate it if you could set up the InterUniversal Transporter™ and sent me back to my room. I would hate to miss that discussion that we were supposed to have on quantum mechanics, especially since I have some extra special thoughts on it now that this has happened."

When Brian finished his question he noticed that Drakken had hidden his hands behind his back like a naughty child would from a parent and had started to back away until he was far enough from the table that he would be out of its range if flung. "Well," he chuckled nervously, "I would love to send you back right now, but there's a problem. You see, when I first designed the IUT I realized that there would be problems with the stability of the universal, eh, barriers that could destroy the entirety of both universes."

"Barriers?"

"Yes, the walls, so to speak, that separate the different universes. My machine is able to break through these walls in a very limited area and create a connection between my lab and the destination. The problem arises from the fact that these walls do not like to be breached, and respond negatively to further attempts to smash through within a given time period."

Brian could see where this train of logic was traveling and feared the station it would pull into. "How long is this time period?"

Drakken turned away at that and tried to mumble his answer, prompting a very loud bang as Brian brought his foot down flat on the concrete floor and actually spread a few cracks from the force. The now obviously nervous doctor squeaked a bit then managed to spit out, "About two months."

The young college boy felt what little of his hopes that he had left shatter into uncountable pieces as he fell to his knees in shock. _Two months. Two whole months. I am going to be lucky to see my home again after nearly sixty days stuck in this universe. So much time would pass on their side, would I even be able to recover? School would be well started by then. My scholarship would be canceled due to my disappearance and my parents would give everything I have to my brothers. How devastated would they be, to have their oldest son suddenly cease to exist out of nowhere? Would they miss my as much as I would miss them? Would they miss me more?_

Despair began to wrap around Brian as the full implications of such a long absence continued to pour in on him. He could feel the beginnings of tears forming in his eyes, but he was beyond caring about the meaningless rules of manhood at this point. Just as he was about to collapse in a final loss of will, he felt a hand fall on his shoulder. He turned and looked above him, and found himself unsure of how to feel as he saw Shego of all people give him an encouraging smile. Confusion replaced hopelessness as his primary feeling, but the meaning of the small gesture did not escape the boy. He managed a half smile back and eventually pushed himself up a sitting position, though he lacked the strength to stand yet.

Shego stood just behind him, still unsure of what possessed her to do what she had done. Equally surprising was the fact that she could not find any reason for her to regret it, despite how strange it was for her to do something like that for someone.

Thankfully for both of them, Drakken was not finished with his explanations, as he continued, "There is no reason to worry so much. The wait may be two months here, but once the machine is ready I can sent you to any point in time in that universe."

"What? But how?"

Drakken smiled broadly as he said, "The true brilliance of my InterUniversal Transporter™ is that it can connect to any point in time and any place in the universe selected. I could put you in Berlin as Hitler rose to power, on the Moon just as Thomas Weller landed and said his speech. Heck, I could even put you in the center of the galaxy just as the Milky Way was about to form. Or at least I could if I hadn't put in specific program designed to keep the machine from connecting anywhere besides Earth within a certain set of years, namely between 1985 and 2035. That way, I would know that anyone brought through would probably understand most of how the machine works. Well, that was the plan for the second use anyway."

Brian felt a surge of hope *Why are there so many damn water based metaphors in this thing?* at the doctor's words and immediately stood up again. "So you're saying that I could go back to literally a few seconds before I disappeared as if nothing had happened." Shego was glad that he had clarified, because she had been absolutely lost during Drakken's speech. "But that still leaves me the problem of being stuck here for two months. What the hell am I supposed to do in the mean time? And how do I know the machine will be safe for that long?"

Drakken waved away the boy's concerns and said, "Don't worry boy. You will have plenty to occupy your time with here with us." Brian didn't like the smirk that he was sporting as he said that. "As for the machine's safety, that will not be a concern so long as…"

A loud boom sounded from the far wall of the chamber, forcing everyone inside to crouch down to avoid the debris raining down on them. *Raining. See, another water metaphor. How many more are there?* Brian felt all the hope he'd just gained from Drakken's reassurances drain away *SERIOUSLY* as he looked up to see just what he'd feared most.

In the gaping hole created in the explosion stood two teens younger than him, one a boy with short blonde hair who seemed to be hiding behind the other, a brilliantly red-headed girl with green eyes and an attitude that seeped *OH COME ON! THAT ONE WAS ON PURPOSE!* confidence. Brian began to cringe as the girl proudly proclaimed, "It's over Drakken."

Drakken staggered to his feet and yelled out obnoxiously, "Kim Possible!"

Brian quickly realized there was only one thing he could do at this point. He got to his feet, walked over to the control console and started banging his head against the metal as rapidly as possible.


	2. Mistakes

Quick Author's Notes: For those of you who read the first version of Chapter 1, please reread it as it was updated quite a bit while you are gone. If you have already read the new version of Chapter 1, please continue and enjoy. Also, a note on the 'thought' segments. Everyone other than Brian will have their thoughts formatted in _italics_. Brian has 3 separate formats depending on which personality type is speaking. _Italics _means emotion based thought, **Bold **represents logic based thought, and Underlined is the middle of the road/ base personality. Unless two or more and used, italics will be the main form.

Alright that should do it. Please enjoy. Don't forget to review.

Mistakes

Universe Ident: 225686551.443

Kim Possible sighed as Ron once again ran into her after coming to a quick stop so she could peak around the corner. Though her sidekick wasn't exactly the most competent of fighters and usually struggled with stealth, this level of difficulty wasn't normal and it made her worry that something was wrong. She couldn't ask right now though, not while they were right in the middle of Drakken's latest base. The red-head decided to shrug it off for now and said, "Stay focused Ron."

"Right, sorry K.P." Ron said meekly. And he was sorry for not trying his best, but it was hard for him to think about the task at hand when other, more depressing thoughts kept plaguing him at the worst of times. Summer was almost over and their junior year was almost upon them. School work had never been Ron's strong suit, and everyone he talked to said junior year was the hardest one, which was a major stress producer by itself.

But the thing that worried him the most was the fact that this would be his third year in high school and he had never once had a girlfriend. It wasn't for a lack of trying on his part, as any lady he saw in the cafeteria or hallways was immediately the source of his attention and one-liners. No, the problem was that it never worked. No girl in school would talk to him aside from Kim and her friend Monique. Monique was nice and all, but she had made it clear that she would be a friend and a friend only, so Ron had quickly dropped any attempts at flirting with her.

Taken together, everything pointed to only one option for Ron to take. His best friend Kim Possible. When his logic first dropped him at this destination, he had immediately rejected it as impossible. Kim had been his friend since before they had gone to elementary school. They'd practically grown up together. He couldn't even imagine thinking of her in that way. At first. As the weeks passed and Ron thought about it more and more, he found that his and Kim's history didn't bother him. He started noticing things about Kim that he had never acknowledged before. How her long red hair fell around her shoulders after a jump, the way her emerald eyes reflected the light perfectly during the day, and especially the warmth of her skin whenever they touched.

This new found attraction had made it harder and harder for him to pay attention during missions, and his decreased performance had begun to make those missions that much more difficult to complete, something which Kim had not failed to notice. This only made Ron more worried that Kim might take him off future missions if he couldn't get a hold of himself, and that just made him start imagining all the ways Kim could hurt without him there. It was a vicious cycle that just fed on itself until Ron was nothing but a pile of nerves that would jump a mile high at the slightest provocation.

Thankfully for Ron they had arrived at the spot designed by Wade for the break in to the main chamber. Kim reached out to Ron and he handed her the backpack which contained the explosives they needed to bring down the wall. When the teenaged team heard Wade say that they would need to actually bring explosives for their mission, they were a bit shocked to say the least. Sneaking into Drakken's bases had always been laughably easy, and this time was no exception. But according to Wade the central room had been designed to survive a close miss by a nuclear weapon back in the 50's, so busting through the main door was impossible. Instead, they needed to break through the walls of the chamber in order to reach the mad doctor, which brought up the question of what he could possibly need all this protection for. The wondering soon ceased when the three team members unanimously agreed that it could be nothing good.

Once the breaching charges had been planted both teens backed up and let Wade give the count down. The explosion echoed loudly in the corridor as they rushed into the newly open chamber. They stopped just inside the hole as Drakken and Shego picked themselves up, though both were confused by the presence of a third person, a boy not much older than them who seemed to regard them horror. Kim ignored the confusing addition and declared, "It's over Drakken."

The blue doctor responded with his usual disbelief. "Kim Possible!"

The boy grimaced at the loud response and promptly walked over to the console of the large machine Drakken had apparently created and began banging his head against it with all his might. Ron winced sympathetically with each strike, wondering what kind of brain washing Drakken must have used on him.

Kim growled at the pain the boy must be suffering and vowed to give Drakken a few extra punches for the needless torture. She leaped forward and made her way to the machine, then swiftly changed directions as Shego moved to intercept her. Kim felt her blood turn hot as she prepared for her fight with the plasma wielder. She ran through her mental list of strategies and picked out one that fit well with the wide and empty room. With next to no cover available for either fighter to use, they would both have to rely on pure skill and tactics to defeat their opponent. Kim's track record in this kind of situation was uneven to say the least but she had been working on improving her problem solving ability in combat and had been using Shego for the last few weeks as a measure of her progress. Hopefully she'd learned enough to be able consistently beat the green thief from now on and she decided to use this battle as her final test.

With this in mind Kim faked a jump to the left then rolled right at the last second, managing to avoid Shego's plasma covered fist by several inches. The teen used this distraction to recover her stance and threw a strong kick at Shego's head, only for her foot to pass cleanly through air as Shego ducked the attack. Kim jumped back on her hands to avoid the retaliatory punch and flipped back to her feet flawlessly.

Shego smirked at the already enjoyable fight and called out, "What's a matter Princess got nothing nice to say today?"

Kim held up her fists and retorted, "I don't talk to people who torture innocents."

Shego quirked up an eyebrow at that. "Torture? What the hell are you talking about Princess?"

"That boy over there who's bashing his head in. You and Drakken must have brain-washed him to do that. No sane person would do that to themselves willingly."

To Kim's surprise Shego actually laughed at her anger, then said, "Two things Pumpkin. One, we didn't brain wash him to do that. Drakken actually ran out of that brain control shampoo several weeks back when a shipment got lost. Two, I'm not entirely sure Brian over there is completely sane."

Now it was Kim's turn to express shock with her eyebrows. "Brian? Who is he, and what is he doing here?" She turned her head a fraction to see that the boy was still knocking against the console, though less vigorously than before. "And why is he doing that to himself?"

Shego smirked widely then fell back into her fighting stance again, "Wouldn't you like to know, sweetie. Tell you what, you beat me in this fight and maybe I'll tell you what I know."

Kim replied by leaping up and kicking downward at Shego then flipping around in midair to avoid Shego's outstretched punch and landing on top of the older woman, pinning her to the ground. She brought out her own smirk as she locked Shego's hands underneath her and said, "That shouldn't be too hard."

Back at the newly exploded entrance to the chamber, Ron began to slink over to the console while Drakken was distracted by Shego and Kim's fight. By the time he reached the raised dais holding the large device and control station, the brainwashed boy had stopped knocking against the console and was starting to rub his head where he'd been whacking it. Ron heard him mutter, "Huh, could've sworn that would hurt more." The blonde sidekick didn't wait to hear more as he reached up and grabbed the boy's shirt then dragged him off the dais and hid behind the console, all without Drakken noticing a thing.

The boy hadn't taken to the dragging very well and was about to yell something when Ron planted his hand over the guy's mouth and said, "Quiet, or else Drakken will hear us." The older boy narrowed his eyes in annoyance and was about to remove the offending hand from his lips when Ron continued, "Don't worry man, we can cure the brainwashing in no time. We already have the formula and everything."

Brian found himself completely baffled by the statement, but managed to retain enough consciousness to remove Ron's hand and say, "Dude, what the bloody hell are you blathering about?"

Ron stared at him incredulously, then asked, "Wait, so you're not brainwashed then?"

"No, of course not. Why would you even think that?"

Ron gestured at the metal console they were sitting behind and knocked on it with his palm.

Brian chuckled a bit and rubbed his forehead, part of which was still visibly red from the previous punishment. "Oh, right. That. Yeah. Let's just leave it as me not reacting well to the probable destruction of my only way home." Ron wasn't sure how to respond to that. Brian took that silence as an advantage and quickly said, "Hey you're one of the good guys right?"

"Well, I don't like to brag but…"

"Ok good. Listen to me very carefully. I need you to, and follow on this one, _not_ destroy Drakken's machine."

Ron shook his head a bit, trying to follow what the guy was saying. "Hang on a moment. You're telling me that you _don't_ want us to destroy the obvious doomsday device sitting right behind you."

Brian groaned and replied, "It's not a doomsday device. It's an InterUniversal Transporter™. Drakken used it to bring me here on accident, and if you and your girlfriend destroy it then I'll never be able to return to my home universe."

Ron just gaped at him for a few seconds before asking, "Are you _sure_ you're not brainwashed?"

Brian pulled at his hair in frustration before rasping, "Yes, I'm sure. Look, you need to listen to me. We don't have much time before the villain, who is probably Drakken unless my instincts are completely off base, decides to bail on his found lab and leaves the machine behind." Ron stared at him blankly for a moment. "Which is bad for me! I already looked at the controls and there is no way I could ever figure those out on my own, and I kinda doubt anyone else could either. If Drakken doesn't send me back using that machine, I could really be stuck here for the rest of my life."

Ron stared at the boy for a few seconds, pondering the situation before he said simply, "Well you're going to have to talk to Kim about that. She runs the missions. Good news is she probably won't destroy it on accident. That's usually my job.

Brian rolled his eyes. "Why don't I feel reassured?" With that he stood up and peaked over the top of the console, not at all surprised to see that Drakken hadn't budged an inch and was still shouting encouragements to Shego across the room. Speaking of the ebony-haired beauty, Brian tracked her and Kim's movements around the room and marveled at how amazing their fighting looked in real life. _Hollywood ain't got nothing on this._ He felt his mouth drop open as the two women leaped nearly twenty feet in the air at a time, mystified as to how that was even possible for a human to achieve.

Ron popped up next to him and sighed dramatically as Kim slid around yet another attack and knocked Shego away. Brian eyed him suspiciously and nudged him in a questioning manner. Ron just kept staring at the battle and said, "You really think she's my girlfriend?"

The college boy felt an odd jolt of emotion as the words struck him. _Well, that clears up Ron's feelings on the subject of relationships._ He grunted noncommittally and started to make his way around the console, committed to rescuing his backpack from the line of fire.

Shego growled in annoyance at being pinned by the smaller teen, quickly igniting her fists and launching herself off the floor, flipping Kim off her at the same time. _She's been getting better. Much better. _Too _much. She needs to be reminded who is truly the best fighter._ With that thought roiling in her mind Shego leaped forward, sweeping her fist laterally towards her opponent. When the younger woman ducked to avoid the blow the plasma wielder kicked up, managing to catch the girl in the stomach and knocking her back a fair distance. The red-head huffed in annoyance and slipped to the side, with Shego following her every move very closely.

They continued their deadly dance across the concrete floor, flipping and sliding and damn near flying as each tried to outpace the other. As the fight wore on, Shego become more and more frustrated with both herself and her opponent. The teen hero was inexplicably faster than ever before, keeping Shego from landing any significant hits on her while being unable to protect herself from the reverse. The thief was too strong to be hurt by most of the contacts, but the fact that Shego was being forced on the defensive grated her severely.

Unbeknownst to Shego, Kim had been training day in and day out ever since the summer started, refreshing and revisiting techniques to maintain her top form, as well as adding in several new exercises to the mix. Amongst these new training methods was a weighted clothing set which Kim had used for nearly a month to increase her physical strength and speed. The results were well-worth the effort, as Kim found that she could effortlessly keep up with her older rival and even out speed her at times.

As she continued to enjoy the physical exertion of the fight, Kim decided to put the next part of her plan in play. Though training her body had been the forefront of her efforts over the summer, Kim had also recognized a weakness she had in these spats with Shego and had worked to correct it. Namely her weakness to the taunting and obviously false flirting her opponent would barb her with during each engagement. Kim was well and truly tired of losing a fight at the last minute just because Shego blew her a mock kiss and she freaked out at the implications. Enough was enough.

To solve her issue, she had gone to her most reliable source of personnel advice, her mother. Anne Possible had been very understanding, if a little annoying given how often she found the problem amusing, and had quickly come up with a solution. Have Kim hang out with a group of actual lesbians for a while to cure her of her fear. When she'd first heard the proposed idea, Kim had seriously thought her mom had left her brain back at the surgery table in her office. *Anne is a brain surgeon, for those who don't know*

To her surprise, and initial annoyance, Anne had convinced Kim to go along with the hair-brained scheme (Kim's words, not Anne's). And further to her surprise Kim actually found herself having fun with this group of friends Anne knew through an acquaintance at the hospital. It was exactly the same as when she hung out with Monique, the only difference being the subjects of the various conspiratorial whispers on possible dating material. *Those would be other women, not men* Several of them had playfully hit on her, but after about twenty minutes of sideways glances and none-too subtle racking stares Kim began to get used to the only semi-serious attention and sent back her own tricky barbs to throw them off.

By the end of the week she was laughing along with them on all of their escapades and had become completely immune to embarrassment. Several of the girls had even given her relationship advice she could use for whatever lucky guy (or girl, as several joked) Kim ended up dating first. The teen hero found that she had greatly enjoyed her time with the group and actually volunteered to join them in the future.

But by far the most valuable thing she had gained from the experience was a far better understanding of lesbians, and the added realization that Shego was most definitely not one herself. With that knowledge secure in her mind, Kim had a brilliant and devious idea. Kim knew Shego wasn't into girls, but Shego didn't know that Kim wasn't either. When told of the downright malevolent plan that her daughter had in mind, Anne had promptly congratulated Kim on her achievement, adding on in the end, "Knock her dead, Kimme."

The teen hero smiled inwardly at the memory then put her plan into motion. After dodging the latest set of punches and kicks and returning a flurry of her own, Kim made sure Shego could see her face and seductively smiled at the older woman.

For her part, Shego was startled to see such an expression on her do-gooder opponent and suffered a swift punch to the face as a result. Before she could recover from the blow Shego felt herself being smacked forward after Kim had flipped over her. This attack also shocked the green-skinned woman, not out of surprise at being knocked over, but at the fact that Kim had pushed on her but to send her flying. _What the hell is she up to?_

Shego righted herself quickly then turned around, plasma roiling in preparation of separating face from head. Instead, she completely froze as she saw Kim's face a hands breadth away from her own. The younger girl's eyes were staring straight into hers, and Shego found herself unnerved at the expression Kim wore. "What's a matter Shego? Are you done fighting already?"

Shego stuttered for a moment then pushed Kim away as hard as she could. Luckily for the hero Shego's plasma had faded before the shove so she was unharmed and ready to leap back into the fight. Only that's not what Kim did. Rather, she started walking slowly toward her opponent, casually swaying her hips as she smiled broadly. "Come on sweetie. Don't tell me you're already finished. We only just started."

Shego could only gape at the younger girl for several seconds before anger took over and she threw a plasma ball at her opponent. Kim watched casually as the projectile approached then sidestepped it as if it had never existed. "Why are you being like that, babe? I'm just talking to you. I thought you liked talking."

The green-skinned woman, expert martial artist and world renowned thief, could only stand still, uncomprehending of what was happening in front of her. _What has gotten into her? Has she lost it or something? She's acting as if she… _Shego's checks glowed emerald as she realized what may be driving Kim to be acting so strangely. _No, no she can't. She doesn't. There's no way. If she did she would have done something by now. _Shego reasserted herself by going back into her defensive posture. "Back off Kim."

Kim allowed her smile to fall somewhat while inside her mind she was dancing with vindictive joy. _Yes! She's fallen for it. Now to seal the deal._ Kim folded her hands in front of her and said, "You're calling me by my real name. Did I do something wrong?" The childish tone she spoke with had taken two days to nail down, but it was oh so worth it to see Shego's checks flare up even more.

"I mean it, back off," Shego said as she lit up her hands.

Kim just pouted playfully and kept approaching her while saying, "But honey, if I don't know what's wrong I can't fix it. Won't you please tell me what I did to hurt you?" She was just a few feet away from her opponent at this point and could feel the heat from the plasma already, but Kim never dropped her sadly seductive expression for a second.

Shego growled as threateningly as she could and reiterated, "Move back or get fried girl."

Kim giggled at that and took another step forward so that she stood in between Shego's outstretched arms. "Oh I doubt you'd do that. You like me too much to hurt me." Kim's mind was full of barely contained laughter at the absurdity of her situation. _Who knew taunting your opponent could be this much fun? I can see why Shego did it to me for so long._ There was the sound of scuffling behind the older woman, but Kim ignored that if favor of finishing off Shego. "If I give you a present will you forgive me?"

Shego huffed at that, desperate to move, to run, to do something to get away from this insane girl in front of her, but her body had betrayed her to this fate. "What gift?" she asked as gruffly as she could, knowing it would not fool Kim in the slightest.

Kim giggled again and whispered, "You know." By now the two women were face to face, mere inches *centimeters* separating their lips. Shego's face was approaching neon with how much it glowed, but something kept her from moving away. _WHY?! WHY CAN'T I MOVE? I don't want to do this._ As if acting solely to spite her thoughts, Shego felt herself inch closer to the younger girl.

Kim had to use every iota of her self-control to keep from keeling over and dying from laughter, but she just managed to hold on and maintain the façade. She eased just a little bit closer, pushing her 'prank' to the ultimate level. Just as she was about to pull back and yell "Surprise!" as loud as possible someone smacked into Shego from the back and Kim suddenly tasted lime-flavored lipstick.

Brian stepped quietly over to the abandoned table and grabbed his backpack, but decided against wearing it just in case something were to happen to him personally. A quick glance showed that Kim and Shego were still engaged in their superhuman fighting. Seriously, what else could you call two women dead jumping nearly 3 meters in the air at once. *Protagonist thinks in metric*

[Okay enough]

*?*

[No more comments from you. They are ruining the story]

*What? No. They love it man.*

[You interrupt the narrative with pointless comments and snark, distracting from events with your pointlessness]

*But its funny.*

[… No. No it is not]

*Yes it is.*

[Continue to speak. Please]

*Okay*

["Bang" Now that that's over with we shall continue with the story]

*Help… please*

["Bang"]

Brian shook his head at the strangeness of this world he had ended up in and made his way over to Drakken. Hopefully he could convince the mad scientist to escape rather than wait for Shego's fight to conclude so that he would be available to use the machine in the future. The fact Drakken was usually saved from jail by Shego in the show may make him hesitant to leave without her, but Brian was confident that the plasma wielder would be able to escape just fine.

With that in mind the boy walked up to Drakken and tapped him on the shoulder, then jumped back as the doc freaked out. "Whoa, easy man. It's just me."

Drakken managed to stop screaming for a moment, then turned on Brian and yelled, "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

Brian looked at him with skepticism and replied, "I wasn't sneaking." Drakken glared at him while he shrugged and continued, "Look Drakken, you need to clear out of here right now. I can't afford for you to be captured. If you are, you won't be able to operate the IUT, and I won't be able to get home."

The scientist shook his head and said, "Not to worry my boy. Even if I am captured by Global Justice then I can simply rebuild the machine."

Brian was surprised by this. On the show Drakken almost never repeated a plot, preferring to move on to another idea immediately after losing. Brian had thought this meant the doc forgot his previous designs after they were destroyed. "Really? Would you have any problems replacing components or anything?"

Drakken smirked and shook his head. "No. I specifically designed the InterUniversal Transport™ to work on a minimum budget." The doc sheepishly rubbed his hair and said, "I've been having some issues with funding recently, so it was necessary to be cheaper than usual."

Brian whistled appreciatively. Not only had this guy found a way to completely circumvent the laws of physics to connect entirely separate universes, he'd done it on a budget. _He may be a fool, but he's no idiot._ "Well that's great news. That means all you have to do is stay out of prison for two months and I can get back home no problem."

Drakken frowned at that and asked, "How am I supposed to do that. Every time I try a new scheme Kim Possible stops me, and that usually includes prison time."

Brian rolled his eyes and joked, "You could just stop doing evil deeds for two months."

Drakken paused at that and then whiningly said, "But what would I do for all that time?"

"Uh." The boy was surprised Drakken was so willing to listen to him, especially since he was suggesting the man just stop doing what he'd been doing for years just because it would help him. _Why is Drakken evil again?_ **Because he tries to take over the world on a monthly basis. **_Oh right._ "Well, you could try taking a vacation."

"A vacation."

Brian nodded. "Yeah, like visit the tropics. Go to an amusement park. Hell, you could even stay at home and watch TV. Who knows, you might even come up with a brilliant new plan to… what do you do again?"

Drakken growled and yelled in a towering voice, "Try to take over the world!"

After rolling his eyes in as exaggerated a manner as possible, Brian replied, "Right. World Domination. Of course." _OF COURSE!_ **Thank you Mr. Julia. **_Of course! _**Stop it.**

He was about to continue when a yellow blur ran past him and tackled the doctor to the ground. Brian was stunned for a moment before he realized that it was Ron who was attacking the blue skinned man. _Damn it man, stop! I need him free._ The two brawlers had rolled off the dais, prompting Brian to follow them in hopes of restraining the sidekick and getting Drakken to leave. He did not immediately join the fight though, preferring to hang back a moment and look for an opening. He got his chance when Drakken pushed Ron off of himself, allowing the 19 year-old college student to grab the soon-to-be high school junior. Brian's grasp was tenuous though and Ron easily able to slip out. He turned on the older boy and screeched, "What are you doing? I'm trying to capture Drakken!"

"What are you doing?" Brian retorted. "I told you earlier I need him free so that I could go home."

Ron shook his head and said, "No you didn't. You said you needed the Doc to operate the machine. He can do that just fine from prison."

Brian face palmed in annoyance and explained, "Yeah, he could, but do you think the authorities are just going to let him use a machine which can connect to different universes willy-nilly?"

Ron just scowled and replied, "It doesn't matter. Drakken is too dangerous to go free. He needs to be in jail."

Brian returned the expression and raised his fists. "No. He. Doesn't." He then raced forward and battered the blonde with his arm, trying to distract him from the blue doctor. It seemed to work, albeit a little too well as Ron started to swing at him now. Brian leaned back to dodge the punches, surprised to find that his reflexes allowed him to do so. This didn't last long though as the younger boy rushed forward and tackled him.

As he fell Brian felt himself slam into someone behind him. He had little time to be concerned with it though as he kicked Ron off and climbed back to his feet. When he did, he managed to catch a glimpse of Drakken barreling through the now open door, several minions following behind him with what looked like components for the IUT. _Good. That solves that problem._ Brian didn't have very much time to celebrate though as a fist smacked into his face from his left. He grunted in pain and turned to his attacker, who was looking very unhappy about the fact that Drakken had escaped. "Uh, look dude, it's not that bad. Honestly." When Ron's scowl deepened he continued with, "Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm not a bad guy here. I'm just a normal, desperate boy looking for a way home. Besides, I made Drakken swear to not commit any evil acts while he was rebuilding the IUT."

Ron's hands dropped to his sides at that. "Really? How?"

_Oh crap, he called my bluff. _**Not at all. He is simply curious as to the method with which we 'convinced' the doctor. **_Do you really need to be that flowery all the time. _**No.** Quiet, both of you. His internal personalities silenced for the moment, Brian raced to come up with a suitable cover story. "Oh, uh, it was… I mean. Look, I promised I would tell him who the smartest scientist in our world was and compare Drakken's work to his, to see if he is the smartest in both universes."

Ron stared at him for a moment then laughed. "That's really what he asked for?" Brian simply nodded and Ron started laughing again.

Brian refrained from joining in and looked at the IUT. _Still intact. Sweet. Maybe Drakken won't need to rebuild it if he can just steal it back from Global Justice or whatever research group they give it to. Course for that he'd need…_

A nearly inhuman screech echoed from behind Brian. As he turned around to see what had uttered such a horrible sound he saw a huge ball of iridescent green plasma flying right toward him. There was only one thing he could do at this point. "OH SHIT!"

Shego felt someone smack into her from behind, too focused on the horror show in front of her to pay any attention to her surroundings. Unfortunately for her the blow knocked her forwards, her face falling right on Kim Possible's waiting lips. She was surprised to find that Kim had not been wearing any lipstick, tasting only bare skin as their mouths were forced together. In spite of the lack of lipstick, and every sane part of her mind, Shego found herself enjoying the kiss far more than she should. _This is not happening. This is not happening! I DON'T LIKE GIRLS! _But even within her mind the words sounded hollow. Adding to this confusion was the fact that the kiss was actually increasing in intensity. Her horror only compounded when she realized that she was actually deepening the kiss on purpose.

Every attempt she made at trying to control herself faltered as the physical sensation of the kiss overran reason. _Why? Why can't I stop myself? What is going on here?_ The only thing she could be thankful for was that neither of them were using their tongues. A snide part of her mind asked if she should change that, and no immediate response was given. Shego's fear and embarrassment fell away as she realized what that silence meant. Try as she might to avoid it, she was really enjoying the kiss.

Was it wrong for her to like it, to enjoy locking lips with another girl? Did she like Kim? These questions stopped all at once as the two women finally hit the floor and their mouths separated. Neither one moved. They stared at each other in silence, both trying to read the mind of the other, not knowing what to think about what just happened.

Kim was the one to finally break the tension by saying, "Well, that was unexpected." Shego remained silent, unsure of what the girl meant. "So, uh… Would you mind getting off please?"

Shego jolted as she realized that she was still lying atop Kim and nearly fell over again standing up. The young hero stood up and dusted herself off while Shego tried her absolute hardest to not stare. The older woman was worried that looking at her enemy… opponent… Kim, would cause her to start studying the younger girl's 'assets'. For her part Kim seemed unnaturally calm, acting as if nothing unusual had happened. "So, um… Are you okay?"

Shego didn't speak for a moment, surprised at how nonchalantly the girl had asked. "I guess." She paused, slight green tints returning to her cheeks as she asked, "So, was that the gift you were talking about?"

Kim chuckled a bit and began to discretely back up. "Well, not exactly. Actually there's something I should tell you." She continued to back up, almost unknowingly running into Brian directly behind her. "I wasn't actually trying to kiss you."

Shego's eyes widened immeasurably. "What."

Kim grimaced as she continued. "I'm sorry I fooled you Shego, but I'm not actually interested in you. It was all a prank I was playing to get back at you for all the times you messed with me while we were fighting. I didn't mean it to go that far."

Shego froze. A raging torrent of untamed emotions poured through her. Confusion, hurt, longing, repulsion, annoyance, regret, the whole gauntlet. But the one emotion that broke through all the others was anger. Unlimited, blinding rage. This rage broke Shego far more thoroughly than any fight she'd ever been in. Huge blobs of plasma warped around her hands as Shego screamed bloody murder. The massive ball of plasma which the green-skinned woman threw glowed as brightly as her anger. Kim blanched as the projectile was launched and threw herself out of the way, but the person behind her had no such chance.

The thief watched in horror as the giant ball of energy collided with the boy and sent him flying across the room until he landed on the IUT control console. Brian's body crumpled as he slid to the ground, huge burns covering his chest where his shirt had burned away. Shego's legs gave out from under her as the enormity of what she'd done hit her. _I've killed him. I killed a kid who had never done anything to me. He was completely innocent, and he's dead because of me. I… I've never…_

Kim and Ron both ran over to the injured boy, Ron reaching into his belt to grab the small first aid kit they brought on every mission. Kim quickly reach down and checked for a pulse. She sighed with relief when she felt the faint pressure in the boy's wrist. "He alive, but only just. Ron, grab the burn cream."

Shego heard what Kim had said and felt a huge wave of relief knowing she hadn't killed Brian. The feeling didn't last long as she realized just how far over the edge she had gone with her anger. If Kim came after her Shego wasn't sure she would even want to escape, as she would have finally done something (in her opinion) that actually warranted jail time. Rather than wait for the red-head to make the choice for her, Shego turned to leave. Before she did though she caught a glimpse of Brian's face and saw his eyes flutter open for a moment.

After having stated the appropriate response to having a giant kill ball flung at you from nowhere, Brian prepared for death calmly. _I only wish I could have seen Pacific Rim one more time._

The plasma struck him as hard as a brick wall and far hotter. His lungs emptied of air in a flash as the superheated projectile melted his shirt and scorched his skin. By the time he had left the ground his body was already numb to the pain, though the impact against the console was enough to jar him severely. Consciousness threatened to flee from him, but through sheer will he kept his mind active, albeit just barely. Delta, damage assessment please.

**Affirmative. It appears we have suffered strong burns across our chest and severe bruising from our landing on the metal console. The worst of it is probably the burned lungs. Those will need some serious hospital attention to fix.**

Right. So I'm going to live right?

**Based on our knowledge of the show and the heroes' quick travel times, we should be able to reach a hospital within plenty of time.**

_Yeah that's great and all but now what are we going to do? Drakken is gone, the machine is damaged, and I'm not sure if you noticed, but Shego just tried to SLAG US for NO REASON!_

Brian prepared to retort when he managed to get his eyes open for a moment and saw Shego staring back at him. The green-skinned woman was perfectly still, her eyes haunted by shame and fear. Brian felt a pang of guilt for being the source of the woman's suffering. No one should have to go through that, especially not her. He struggled for a moment than gave her an encouraging smile, mimicking the expression of support she had given him earlier. This seemed to satisfy the woman as she turned and fled immediately after. As she disappeared from his sight he felt the last of his strength falter and his mind fell into the comforting darkness.


	3. Discovery

Discovery

Comfortable and quiet darkness enveloped Brian as he slept through his injuries. As pleasant as it was though he could not avoid the tendrils of awakeness creeping toward him. The random insanity of the dreamscape fell away and was replaced by the blank emptiness of what he liked to call his semi-consciousness. It was here that his mind would go whenever he lacked external stimulation, whether in daydreaming or simple creative thought.

It was also here where he had his conversations with himself in the forms of separate personalities or even just bodies representing a viewpoint in an argument. Brian had told very few people about this quirky method of thought he used, worried that it was a sign of some inherent insanity. Of course, if he was able to ask the question he was probably fine. Mostly.

Metaphorical eyes opened to see a blank white space, empty of any recognizable object. As he stretched the thought processes of his mind, the effort mimicked by rotating his arms, two projections appeared in front of him. The one on the right wore what looked like a military uniform, clipped and pristine without any distinguishing tags. The other on the left was a perfect contrast, with an overly large and vibrant t-shirt and baggy shorts, his hair visibly mussed beyond any possible control. These two were his primary projections, one of logic and the other of emotion. These were far too simple descriptions for the both of them though, as each was a complex melding of memories, thought, and feeling that represented different parts of himself.

The logical one was named Delta, due in part to his nature as a data collector and analyzer, as well as his extreme similarity to a logic based A.I. from the web series Red vs. Blue. The other was called Epsilon because he covered emotions and acted almost exactly alike to the memory based A.I from the same show. Brian smiled at them and said, "D, E, how are things going?"

Delta rolled his eyes at the nicknames, while Epsilon gibbered angrily for several moments. It was the mark of Brian's questionable sanity that while he had created these two out of boredom several years ago they had become almost separate minds of their own right, sharing his head and helping him out. That said, they were also sometimes rather annoying as they commented on events going on around him and occasionally told him what to do. Not that Brian always listened to them of course.

"Yeah, and that's when you get into trouble dumbass," Epsilon said as he stomped forward. "And what did we tell you about using those stupid nicknames?"

Brian stared back at his projection unfazed and said, "To not to." He then smirked. "But like you just said, sometimes I don't listen to you guys all that well."

Epsilon went back to gibbering violently as Delta, ever the diplomat, stepped forward to defuse his more aggressive brother. "Still, it would be better if you ceased such nicknaming. We feel that it undermines what little respect for us you still have."

Brian shook his head and said in a conciliatory tone, "Sorry Delta. You know I don't mean anything by it. I was just looking for a little humor to focus on given the nature of what's happening upstairs." He gestured to the nonexistent ceiling with his hand, reminding himself and the projections of just why they were in his semi-conscious. "Besides, Eps is way too easy to tease." Epsilon decided that simply scowling would be enough in this case, and allowed the nickname to pass. Brian smiled and mentally saved that one for later use. He turned back to his logic and asked, "Alright Delta, just what the heck has been happening to us while I've been out?"

Delta nodded and said, "Given that we were unconscious for most of the time I had little access to the senses. However, I did notice that we were flown by helicopter to a hospital some time after we fainted. After that, sensory input dropped off to zero. As for our physical condition, I would estimate that we have more or less recovered from our injuries, though the full prognosis would be best given by our doctor."

Brian contemplated this for a moment and then turned to Epsilon and asked, "So Epsilon, what should we do when we wake up?"

The emotion personification drew himself up to his full height and yelled, "Find Shego and kick her ass!" Both Delta and Brian face-palmed at that, though they quickly stopped as Epsilon continued with, "After we learn how to fight from Kim of course."

Brian shook his head and replied, "We aren't going for revenge against Shego."

Epsilon gaped at him angrily while Delta simply looked surprised. "Why the hell not?" Epsilon sputtered. "She nearly killed us with that plasma ball, even if it was an accident."

"That's just it. It _was_ an accident. I saw her face after we were injured. She was horrified at what had happened. She wasn't thinking 'oh darn I went and killed him too early'. No. Shego was just as concerned for our safety as Kim and Ron were, probably more so."

Epsilon sighed apologetically then said, "Alright, so no revenge then." Brian shook his head in affirmation. "But what about pranking her? Is that off limits?" When Epsilon got no response other than an annoyed glare, he decided to let the subject slide. "So besides our dealings with Shego, which are going to be really dull because of you two, we need to figure out what we are going to do for the next three months." Epsilon scratched his head for a few seconds, searching through Brian's base of knowledge about the Kim Possible universe. "Hey, doesn't Kim's family have a guest room that they never use? We could ask to stay there until we get better situated."

Delta nodded as he recalled, "Yes, the guest room is an oft used device in fanfiction to allow someone unexpected to stay at the Possible household. It should be able to fulfill our needs until we are able to support ourselves."

Brian looked down at his feet and grunted. When he felt the questioning looks of his projections he said exasperatedly, "We're basing our plan of action from fanfiction details. That is such a good idea that my lawyer wants to invest stock in it. Where should he send the money?"

Delta laughed at the ridiculously obvious sarcasm and asked, "Is there a problem with this idea?"

Brian waved his arms as he proclaimed, "Yeah there's a problem with it. You're basing your data on fanfiction, not canon details. How are we supposed to know whether or not fan speculation is accurate or not when we don't even know if this universe itself follows the canon?"

Epsilon walked up and put his hands on Brian's shoulders comfortingly, calming him down somewhat. The projection smiled and said nonchalantly, "We don't." Brian glared at him in response. "We're just going off of what's most likely to be true. If we're wrong, then we'll improvise."

Just as Brian was about to say that they were not Indiana Jones and that improv would not work for them, the surrounding semi-dreamscape fell away and Brain's mind moved up into full consciousness.

The first thing Brian did upon waking up was yawn loudly enough to impress a lion, stretching his limbs as far as said feline could match. He then recognized that his stretching meant that he was unbound and appeared to be fully healed. Brian took a few experimental breaths and twisted around to test for any pain. When none appeared he whooped for joy and sat up, sending his sheets flying off him and fluttering to the ground.

At this Brian finally looked at his surroundings and was slightly put out to see that he sat in what looked like any regular hospital room. Plain white walls, tackily painted ceiling, weird monitoring equipment beeping quietly in the background. The only odd thing he noticed was that the obligatory hanging TV was an expensive looking flat screen. Brian briefly wondered about that but wrote it off as part of this universe's obviously higher technological level. _Hope that's not on the hospital bill._

It was then that he realized that he was completely alone. There were no other patients in the beds and no doctors nearby to administer to him. Despite himself he felt slightly put out. _Nobody here to see me? I almost died horribly and I'm all alone when I wake up? Thanks guys. I sure feel welcomed._ Brian huffed and stood up, wanting to check the halls for a roaming caregiver.

He stopped though when he happened to look down at himself. Brian thankfully wasn't wearing one of those god-awful hospital gowns that covered less than a bath towel and were half as comfortable, instead sporting some boxer shorts for coverage. This had the effect of leaving his chest bare to the world and it was there that Brian saw the only true mark of his life threatening ordeal. Sitting smack dab in the center of his chest was a massive scar, colored a deep angry red and stretching from rib to rib. The edges violently flared out like the edges of a flame, the scared tissue conflicting heavily with his tanned skin. At the very center sat a dark grey spot which seemed to faintly shine with an eerie pale sheen. It looked as though someone had taped a burnt mirror to his chest and charbroiled everything near it.

Brian spent several minutes simply staring at himself, thoughts running in circles as he worked to comprehend the results of Shego's accidental assault. When the young man finally found his words, he could only say, "That… is freaking epic!" Brian leapt up from the bed and stared more at the scar, laughing madly as the full visual effect sunk in. "This is by far the most awesome scar I have ever seen. I mean, it looks like someone tattooed the freaking Sun to my chest and added a creepy alien ship in front just to throw people off. Oh man I wish I had a camera."

Brian experimentally poked at the tarnished skin, feeling for any possible tingling or pain. Upon finding none he slapped the scar and cackled triumphantly. "It doesn't even hurt. Sweet. I may actually have to thank Shego for this one." As the words left his mouth he remembered that last glimpse he had caught of the woman thief before he blacked out. That look of terror and guilt she'd had tore at his heart. I have to let her know that I'm okay somehow.

_And how, pray tell, do you plan on doing that, hmm?_

**We could ask Wade to route a message through to Drakken. I'm sure the boy genius can figure out how to reach him.**

_Sure, that'll work._

**I was being serious.**

_So was I._

Brian shook his head to stop Delta and Epsilon's argument before it could begin. As interesting as his scar was, it could only keep his attention for so long and the boy began to wonder what time it was. He moved to check his watch and became very still when he saw his bare left wrist. They took my watch. A subconscious growl stirred in his throat. They'd better have had a damn good reason to remove it. Otherwise I will be _most_ upset.

An angered Brian began to check the monitors near the wall to see if they could inform him of the time. His frustration only increased when he found nothing but incomprehensible graphs and dull blinking lights. "Argh! What bloody time is it?"

"It is currently 11:37 P.M. on July 26th, 2017, if you're curious."

Brian turned in surprise to see an exceptionally beautiful woman standing at the entrance. Her flaming red hair and elegant features near perfectly mimicked those of her daughter. Anne Possible.

_In the very sexy doctor's lab coat. Hospital Hottie indeed._

**Knock it. She's Kim's mother and happily married. There is no chance in a frozen hell of it ever happening.**

_Did I say anything about that? No, I did not. Doesn't stop me from appreciating beauty when it appears._

Quiet.

Brian rubbed his head in embarrassment, feeling his ever coarse hair standing up and waving like the pit at a rock concert. Can never be nice can it? "That late huh? Guess that explains why nobody was here."

Anne smiled and said, "True. You're actually rather lucky you woke up when you did. My shift just ended and I was about to head home."

Brian noted the dark leather jacket and matching handbag she carried each arm. He nodded and said politely, "Well, take care driving home. Fatigue can be worse than alcohol on a driver's facilities. Guess it's back to the bed for me then. Doubt I'll be able to sleep though after spending… how long was I out for anyway?"

Anne shook her head and laughed. "You seem to be a bit more out of it than I thought. When I said I was going home, I meant you were going to come with me." Brian let his mouth drop open in surprise. "Kim told me about what happened to you, and me and James agreed that it wouldn't be right to just leave you here at the hospital after you had recovered, so we're going to have you stay in our guest room until we can sort things out somewhat. Oh, and you were asleep for three days after the surgery."

Brian wasn't sure which part to respond to first, then had his choice taken for him by Epsilon, who spurted out for him, "I haven't eaten in three days!" Delta mentally face palmed while Brian swiftly realized that the idiot sub-personality was right. Thankfully the boy wrest control of his mouth from Epsilon and said more calmly, "I guess my injuries must have been pretty bad then eh?"

Anne nodded soberly and said, "Yeah, the surgeons told me it was touch and go for some time, but after they put the salve inside your lungs you improved remarkably quickly. From there they just had to tend to the burns and you took care of the rest. Got to say, you had a lot of people scratching their heads at how you healed so fast, but we do have an answer now."

Now Brian was even more confused, which was not helped by the fact that part of him was hesitant about taking the charity from the Possibles. Ever since he'd entered junior high, he was always concerned about people doing things for him without some sort of equal treatment on his part. It played against his strong sense of balance to accept charity, but he'd also had a lot of problems giving back to people who were kind to him. This led to Brian shying away from new people and keeping back from others who did know him. Only close family was exempt from this self-inflicted introvertedness.

Delta, however, was having none of it. **Enough of this chivalrous bull-crap. You know that you need their help to even survive here. There's no time for you to feel sorry for yourself. **His tone softened and he continued. **Besides, you can pay them back by not being a dick. Search your knowledge. You know this to be true.**

Brian mentally laughed at the reference then returned to the other issue on his mind. "What do you mean by that? Is there something special about me or something?"

Anne turned to the far side of the room and moved a curtain covering a patient space, revealing his backpack and a massive suitcase that looked like an overweight volcano. Brian let out a quiet gasp of joy at seeing his backpack, and therefore his precious laptop, intact.

The doctor gestured to the case and said, "While you were unconscious Kim and Ron told us about your situation and how you would need support since you are not from around here. _Very _not from around here. They happened to mention that that backpack had everything you owned, and it doesn't exactly have very many clothes in it. Since your shirt and shorts were ruined by the plasma I sent Kim out to get you some proper attire for when you woke up."

Brian suddenly became aware that all he had on were a pair of modesty shorts, but shrugged it off since the doctor hadn't reacted much to his near nudity. "She seemed to enjoy the challenge of buying clothes for a boy a little too much, hence this big ol' suitcase digging a hole in the floor." She tried to lift it but the massive suitcase refused to budge.

_Geez, how many clothes did Kim buy, a whole store's worth?_

"Care to give it a shot?"

Though he wanted very badly to point out that he doubted he could move it very far on his own Brian stepped forward, making a big show of rubbing his hands together and flexing. Anne laughed at his antics and simply gestured to the case again. Brian reluctantly nodded then reached down with both hands. When he started lifting the case though he swiftly found that it weight far less than it should, jerking back and nearly losing his balance as the hefty case flew off the ground.

Anne's nearly silent gasp of surprise meant that she'd seen it too, and was somehow expecting such an event to occur. Brian immediately turned to her and said, "Huh. That's new."

Anne was still staring at the case as she said, "I can't believe it but they were right. You really are different."

Curiosity and confusion equally mixed on Brian's face as his expression asked her to explain.

Still looking somewhat startled at the semi-expected result of her test Anne turned to the monitors near Brian's bed and ruffled through them, looking for something in particular. She soon found it, a cluster of paper sheets with weird graphs on them, and turned to a specific page. "Well, after the surgery some of the doctors were intensely curious as to how you survived such a large blast of plasma and began to test you for anything unusual. They soon found their answer in your DNA."

Brian quirked up an eyebrow as he parroted, "My DNA? Why? What's so special about it?"

Dr. Possible shifted uncomfortably for a moment before saying, "When we did a DNA comparison of your blood versus those we have on record, only one possible match popped up."

Anne handed Brian the sheet and he looked down at it in confusion. Who could he possibly share DNA with if he wasn't even a part of this universe? The sheet gave him his answer in the form of a single name, a name which threw Brian's mind through a whole roller coaster of loops. "Shego."

*Two days earlier. Somewhere in the Rocky mountains*

Shego huffed in annoyance as she turned around the corner and came up on yet another dead end. She had half a mind to plasma the wall out of sheer frustration, but the memory of the incident just two days prior stayed her hand. _Damnit, I need to learn to control myself. I can't let something like that happen again._

It was hard for the plasma wielding thief to not be furious though as she found herself becoming once again lost in Drakken's latest lair. Navigating through secret research facilities and art museums came naturally to Shego, but she would swear on her plasma that whoever had designed the layouts of these super-villain lairs had to have been high enough to see the lot of them from orbit. The green skinned woman turned back around the corner and saw one of their new minions walking in the other direction. "Hey you, henchman!"

The man froze in place, his arms firmly planted at his side as Shego ran up to him. "Hey, which way is it to the control center?"

The man, who stood half a head shorter than Shego and seemed to be just barely out of high school, was stuttering madly as he tried to work up the courage to speak. Shego growled in impatience and yelled, "Sometime this century please!"

The young henchman jumped in fear and said rapidly, "Down this hall, turn left twice then turn right."

Shego realized that the young man, practically still a boy, was absolutely terrified of her. Normally she would have just put that down as the kid knowing his place but now it markedly concerned her. Shego always tried so hard to intimidate people into silence so that she wouldn't have to listen to them, but part of her now wondered just how fear that fear went.

Did the henchmen that worked for Dr. Drakken avoid her because she was simply scary, or was it because they were afraid of suffering permanent injury or death? _Certainly haven't done anything to disprove that notion have I?_ Shego grimaced and tried to brush the thought away but it refused to leave. The thief's expression softened and she said, "Thanks kid. Listen, how about you take the rest of the day off, huh. You look a little too pale to be working right now."

The henchman lost all pretense of dignity and nearly fell over in amazement. His face was so comical that Shego actually had to suppress a laugh. The minion soon regained his bearings and snapped off a hasty salute. "Yes ma'am!" he cried as turned around and fled as fast as his shorter legs could carry him.

To Shego's surprise her mood had brightened considerably and the feeling of guilt had evaporated. _Maybe being feared isn't such a sweet deal after all._ Shego followed the henchman's directions and soon came upon the main chamber. Drakken was furiously dashing about, grabbing components and tools at a dizzying rate. Shego waited until she was only a few feet away from the Doc before she announced herself by poking him on the shoulder.

Drakken dropped everything he was carrying and flipped around in surprise, his hands held up in a vain attempt to mimic her and Kim's defensive stances. When he finally recognized his second in command he grunted angrily and yelled, "Shego, what have I told you about sneaking up on me?"

Shego smirked at her boss's ever present weakness to surprises. "To not to," she replied dryly. "Though I'm not sure if what I did counts, since I wasn't even trying to sneak."

Drakken grumbled a bit then continued, "Yes, well please just don't from now on okay. Every time you do it I feel like you respect me just a little bit less."

Shego bit back a retort along the lines of 'that requires I respect you first idiot', an act which actually surprised her somewhat. She had actually passed up on a chance to dis Drakken. What was up with her? Shego shrugged it off as her good mood making her less crabby and wandered around the large pile of metal and wires Drakken was slaving over. His newly extreme work ethics surprised her and she asked, "So what exactly is this pile of junk you're working on?"

Drakken paused in his work for a moment and looked at her questioningly. "Since when have you cared what it was I'm building?"

Shego just rolled her eyes and snarked, "Ever since you started running around like a squirrel trying to smash all his nuts together." Drakken winced at the imagery and subconsciously reached for his crotch, which just caused Shego to roll her eyes even harder. "Why are you working this hard anyway? You've never put this much effort into any of your other schemes. What's different here?"

Drakken visibly brightened and returned to his work, fairly shrieking out his words over the clanging of struck metal. "That boy Brian is counting on me to get him home within three months, and since I happen to be taking a vacation from evil at the moment, I figured that I might as well get started on the new IUT as soon as possible."

While Drakken made another trip to the pile of metal and components sitting nearby Shego eyed the machine in progress. She swiftly noted that it looked almost nothing like the previous design, being a massive boxy structure rather than the twisted cage of arms it had been before. As the Doc came back Shego voiced her question of the different design.

Drakken began sticking some metal panels over a wall of circuits as he replied, "Well Shego, you should know that the first design was just a prototype. If I had been perfectly honest about its capabilities at the time than its name would have been One-way Universal Transporter."

Shego's eyebrows rocketed up at that as she realized just what he meant. "You mean that this thing can only pull things here, not send them back. But if that's true then why did you tell Brian that you could send him home? Why get his hopes up?" Shego put her hands on her hips and glared at Drakken, trying to get him to acknowledge what she'd said.

To her surprise the doctor shook his head at her, taking up a welder and applying it to the now in place panels. "Not quite Shego. See, the old machine was incapable of two-way transit, while this new design should be able to directly send matter both ways. The problem with the old IUT was that it could only open up a breach large enough to send and receive data, nothing more massive than the electrons capable of doing that. That problem severely limited its abilities in many ways. In contrast I have designed the new IUT with greatly increased power output, allowing it to form breaches large enough to allow large quantities of matter to pass through, even people and objects. Because of that I no longer need to waste energy on a restructuring device or use any more of your blood."

Shego had been just barely following the doctor's explanations, not really understanding the concept of breaches or how objects were harder to transport than data. However, she quite quickly caught the tidbit at the end about her blood. The plasma wielder immediately grabbed Drakken, pulling him away from his welding equipment and held him up in the air, her hand raised in a fist. Normally the fist would be covered in plasma but Shego held back, wanting to test her restraint. It was really hard to resist though. "What did you mean about my blood?"

Drakken's eyes were hidden behind a pair of welding goggles so it was hard to judge his actual thoughts, but the expression on his face did not speak of fear. Rather, the doctor seemed to be exasperated and annoyed at the interruption of his work. He said, "Now you see, this is why I didn't want to tell you Shego. I knew you'd overreact." Shego's eye twitched somewhat but she did not speak, so Drakken continued. "Still, I am telling you now so you don't freak out later should you find out some other way. Anyway, you remember a few weeks ago when I gave you a physical?"

Shego nodded. She had been surprised at the time to find out that Drakken knew basic medicine, while the Doc explained that he'd learned it on the side to lower minion costs. Lord but the man was cheap.

"Well during the physical I took a sample of your blood. I think I told you it was to test for something. What was it?" Drakken muttered this last almost to himself.

Shego grunted and ignored the question. How the hell was she supposed to remember that? Since the Doctor seemed to be taking a very long time explaining himself, Shego decided to lower him to the ground. That didn't mean she was done with him though, as she made sure to plant herself between Drakken and the nearest exit.

Drakken paused for a moment to express his thanks and said, "Whatever it was I said I was testing for was actually a lie."

_No shit Sherman. _Shego shook her head and interjected, "It had better not have been for cloning. You know _damn_ well how I feel about that."

Drakken nodded hesitantly and said, "Yes, I well remember your insistence on adding that clause to your contract. And I can honestly say this wasn't for cloning. Technically." Drakken coughed falsely on the last word, showing his confidence in the 'technicality'.

Shego narrowed her eyes dangerously at him and asked, "Then what was it for Doc?"

This time the blue-skinned man actually gulped this time, his reluctance obvious as he stuttered, "W… Well it was the only way to make the machine operate properly, at least on the human transportation part. See, because the breach the IUT prototype made was so small, only data carrying electrons were able to go through. The name is actually rather off now that I think about it. Instead of transporting objects from one universe to another, the machine copies the identifying data of whatever, or whoever, happened to be nearby. Because of this, I needed a way to reproduce the objects the machine copied."

Drakken walked over to his new machine and pointed at the wall of components he'd been working on. "The old IUT had to use a complex 3-D printer to recreate the data into objects, or people in Brian's case. I needed your blood Shego because the ordinary DNA in the printer would decompose too quickly to form an actual body. Without your blood, Brian would still be just data floating around in the machine."

Shego was quiet for some time as she processed the doctor's words. Normally she would ignore him when he went on an info dump like this, as his various world domination schemes were usually too groan-inducing to be taken seriously. But this was important enough to force the thief to actually piece together what Drakken had said bit by bit. Once she had, her fury nearly broke its bonds again as she recognized that Drakken had, in essence, cloned her through another person. She was about to clobber him appropriately (plasma off of course) when an even bigger thought hit her. If Brian had been remade with her DNA, then that meant…

"He has powers like mine, doesn't he?"

Drakken nodded solemnly as he said, "It is the only explanation for how he was able to survive that blast." Shego jolted at his words. "Forgive me for saying this Shego, but I've seen your powers at work firsthand many times. Been on the business end of them too. If that blast had hit an ordinary human being, they would have been dead instantly."

Horror. Horror was the only word that could describe it. Shego felt her body go numb in comprehension, her world view shattered as she realized the depths of her previous actions. She said the look of terror Brian had as he watched the plasma ball reach him, his helplessness etched on his face before he flew away faster than the human body should move. That look on his face as he faded into unconsciousness. His slight smile of acceptance.

All at once Shego was running, flying out of the central chamber and barreling through anyone unlucky enough to be in her way. Instinct brought on by need lead her straight to the hanger bay where she leapt into a hovercraft and took off immediately, ignoring the dangling rope and lock which had held it in place.

There was only one though in her mind, one endlessly repeating in Shego's head as she rocketed past the landscape at several hundred miles per hour.

_I need to know. I need to see. I must see for myself. If he's…_

*Back at the hospital* [Don't make that a running thing] *Oh come on man, this one is actually helpful ya know* ['sigh']

Brian stared at the sheet for several minutes, seemingly uncomprehending of what he'd read. In actuality, he, Delta, and Epsilon were all engaged in a three-way row over the information.

Shego! SHEGO! I'm seriously based off of Shego? How the fuck is that even possible?

_I don't know man. Fan fiction can be very screwy about this sort of thing._

**But we don't know if fan fiction rules apply in this case. Everything that has happened so far has been fairly logical and at least loosely based in science. There may very well be a reasonable explanation for this oddity.**

_LOOSELY BASED! Since when did super powers and going to other universes have any basis in reality?_

**There are numerous theories about…**

_Oh no, those aren't theories. Theories require consistent proof. All those scientists have are vague guesses and wild ass ideas that are about as accurate as Fox New's view of the world._

We're still alive aren't we? We are still affected by gravity and forces right? So that must mean physics still has some power here. Now, if Delta is right and there is a rational reason behind our new DNA, then how do we go about finding it?

**Drakken. He was the one who brought us here and is the most likely to know something. Therefore I recommend that we return to the message idea. It is no less viable than before and now we have enough serious questions that Drakken will have to answer.**

_Or we could threaten to release our DNA to the public and make our powers well known. Who knows? If some scientists study our empowered DNA they might just find a weakness. One that would affect Shego too. Shego can force the doctor to answer for us._

Let's save that idea for if we genuinely need it. Blackmail is nice and all but I'd rather not piss off Shego if we can avoid it. We all know what happens when you do that.

They all laughed good naturedly at the joke.

For now though we stick to the message plan, only falling back on blackmail if nothing else works. Agreed?

The two projections nodded in affirmation.

Now, what the hell do we tell Anne? She's been standing there for the past five minutes while we've been arguing in here.

_Oh, oh, I have an idea!_

After finally finishing his mental council Brian looked up at Mrs. Possible, letting the paper fall to his side as if in disbelief. "I only have one question," The boy said ominously. Anne worriedly nodded in response. "Where the bloody hell is my goddamned watch?"

Anne had been just about to gasp in concern but instead found herself laughing at the absurdity of his question. "It's," she cough a bit to recover. "It's in the top pocket of his backpack."

Brian laughed at Anne's expression, the clear, high-pitched giggles sending the good doctor into another fit of hysterics. When they'd both recovered from their long laughing spell, Brian began to flex his arms and legs to test out his new strength. "So I now have super resistance and great strength right? I wonder if my speed has increased too." To test this Brian swung his fist through the air as fast as he could manage. The speed of the movement nearly sent Brian off-balance but he heard a very satisfying crack as the air displaced by his fist fought to return to its origin. Based on his experience this meant that Brian could move his limbs about as fast as the business end of a professionally swung bat, putting him several levels above any normal person. Still, well trained fighters would be able to match him without too much difficulty, so Brian decided to warn Epsilon off any duels with Kim until he'd actually learned some skills.

Brian laughed ferociously and said, "Oh yeah. Yeah that's going to work out just fine."

Anne simply smiled and gestured to the door. "As fascinating as it is to watch you do that, I would much prefer it if you tested your new abilities somewhere that is not my place of business."

Brian grinned cheekily and replied, "Okay you're right. I'm done for now. Right after I just out the nearest window." Brian was about to run out of the room in search of said window when Dr. Possible blocked his path and pointed at the forgotten backpack and suitcase. Brian ruffled though the suitcase, which nearly exploded from the internal pressure of the clothes inside, and grabbed a simple outfit for himself. He was pleasantly surprised at how well the clothes fit him and resolved to thank Kim for the new wardrobe. Brian shrugged on the backpack and effortlessly lifting the still buldging suitcase.

Anne led the way out into the corridor and Brian followed without a second look. As they walked Anne suddenly said, "If you are really so eager to throw yourself out a window, you should know that the guest room is on the second floor and overlooks the backyard."

Brian smiled at the thought. _Man Anne is a really cool chick. If only she were a bit younger and not so married._ **Oh for god's sake.**

The two made their way down to the lobby without incident, though Brian starred longingly at each window they passed. Once they reached the front room they caught sight of someone exiting the elevator. He was somewhat shorter than Brian, with wispy black hair that looked to be in the process of disappearing and a flat face that would be hard to notice in a crowd. "Ah Anne, nice to see you. And I see that my patient is finally awake. You had a lot of us worried with your Sleeping Beauty act there young man."

Brian mentally filed the Disney movie reference away for confirmation later as he responded, "Oh you must have been one of the surgeons who saved my life. I really cannot thank you enough Mr.?"

"Jewles. Matthew Jewles, Surgeon M.D. A pleasure to speak with you as well Mr. Forrest. So Anne, is it true? Does he have the…?" The man gestured strangely, though Mrs. Possible seemed to understand him.

"Yes he does. Brian, care to demonstrate?"

Brian nodded and hefted his suitcase off the ground, causing Dr. Jewles to exclaim, "Oh tremendous! Simply outstanding! This is a great medical find. Those boys and girls in the biolabs would have a field day with you my boy. No wait, make that a whole month. Maybe even a year. Oh stupendous!"

Brian leaned over to Anne as the male doctor gushed and whispered, "Is he always this excitable?"

Anne chuckled and said, "No, only when he's won the office pool." Brian's obtuse eyebrow begged further explanation. "We all made bets about whether or not you would have powers when you woke up. Matthews here bet you would have super strength, super speed, super-toughness and advanced regeneration. You've proven to have all of them, hence his extreme reaction."

Brian rolled his eyes at the story, more amused than annoyed by the bets made on his fate. He coughed loudly to get Matthew's attention and said, "Well it was nice meeting you doctor but I think I can see the tendrils of fatigue reaching out to poor Anne here so we must be going. Hopefully the next time we meet it will be as acquaintances rather than as doctor and patient."

Dr. Jewles nodded and shook his hand firmly, managing to contain his glee for the moment. "Yes, we must let dear Mrs. Possible get her beauty sleep mustn't we? Good luck Brian. We here at the hospital were glad to help." The doctor walked away with one final wave as Brian and Anne headed to the hospital doors for the parking lot. Just before they left the building Brian caught a glimpse of Matthews grabbing a snack out of a nearby concession machine. The sight reminded the tired boy of his newly insistent hunger and he mentioned his for food to Anne. They agreed to stop by a drive-through for a quick bite.

The two made their way through the parking lot to Anne's car, a sleek black two-seater that looked like it was speeding even when sitting still. Brian let out an appreciative whistle at the sight, which Anne shrugged off with a smile, saying it was 'her one vanity'. The pair piled into the jet on wheels and drove off into the night.

After a short visit to a fast food place, one that looked so much like McDonalds it physically hurt (particularly Brian's forehead), they finally arrived at the Possible house. Brian finished nibbling on his last chicken strip and said, "That is one very nice house."

Indeed it was. The beautiful wooden home was comprised of two large floors that were stilted above the ground, huge windows covering much of the outer wall on the lower floor. A blue van was sitting in the driveway next to Anne's speedster, though what it was doing outside the garage was beyond Brian. Anne smiled as she stepped out of the car. "You think so? James and I built it 18 years ago, back before this place was a neighborhood. He wanted a house that was just far enough out of town to stargaze from on quiet nights and there was a medical clinic nearby that I trained in. After that, all these other houses grew up around us and we've become the unofficial heart of this area. James actually had to turn down an offer for a seat on the city council so that he could finish his internship at the rocket center."

Brian smiled genuinely at the story, happy to see the lives of the Possible parents filled out from the show. Their professions and their parenting were about all that was ever known about them in the series, and to hear just the sort of excellent people they were brought warmth to Brian's heart. Maybe there really are people that good in the world.

_No shit. _

Shut it.

Brian and Anne climbed up the stairs, Brian still carrying his backpack and suitcase as they ascended. Mrs. Possible unlocked the door and quietly swung it open. When no sounds were heard from inside Anne ushered Brian in and closed the door. "Looks like the twins and Kim are asleep. James' car is here so he's probably in his study. Since he's the only one still up we'll wait till tomorrow to introduce you. Trash is in the kitchen under the sink and the guest room is upstairs, second door on the left. Bathroom is right next to it. Sleep well."

Brian bid her good night and trumped off to the kitchen to dispose of his garbage from the restaurant, lugging the still lighter than it should be clothes bag. When he entered he remarked to himself how plain the room seemed in real life. The only unique thing in the room was the circular booth table in the corner under the window. Based on what Anne had said about them building the house custom, Brian guessed they had decided on a booth so they could cuddle during meals. How cute. He also noticed a box of pizza left open on the table, meaning Kim had ordered out for herself and the twin terrors. Still feeling a bit hungry Brian went and nabbed himself a slice. Or two. With the extra food slowly moving down his throat Brian walked up the stairs, putting in some effort to make his steps as light as possible. *Heh heh, Possible* ['sigh'] He did this to test for any loose steps that would squeak late at night if he wanted to sneak about. When no creaking boards reached out to him by the top of the stairs Brian was confident that he could slink around this home just as well as his own.

Brian Forest had always prided himself on his light touch and sensitive ears, able to catch conversations from across whole rooms undetected. His skill had hurt him more than a few times when he'd heard things he really shouldn't have (seriously Mom? You know how late I stay up), but he preferred having it to not. This skill allowed him to know that snoring was clearly audible from two different rooms, while the soft tones of conversation came from the last on the right. Satisfied that no one was aware of his presence at the moment, Brian took the opportunity to relieve himself in the bathroom. *Not like that you pervs* [Really? Did you have to bring that up?] *Hey, you know some of them are thinking it* [Oh god].

A quick flush of the toilet later and Brian felt significantly better, not to mention a fair bit lighter. He sighed as he walked to his new room, hoping there weren't too many light sources he'd have to cover up. Sleeping in total darkness was one of the boy's many quirks, and had resulted in several nicknames like Mole or Bat, though the former was more appropriate since his old room was below ground. Brian reached out to the door knob and sucked in a breath.

**Here goes.**

_Into the breach gentleman._

Brian opened the door and was met by a rather plain room overall. The bed was of average size with a couple of pillows and thick covers that looked perfect for winter nights. A closet was framed in the wall opposite the bed and a nice little TV sat on a clothes dresser next to it. The room was decorated in a simple style with an overall light blue color scheme.

All of this together made an excellent package that Brian could easily come to love but there was just one problem. Brian hadn't noticed it yet. All of his attention was focused on the pair of deep emerald eyes that had been fixed on him from the moment he entered. "Shego."


End file.
